Liam Payne bonded with Justin Bieber over shared struggles as artist

Liam Payne recalls meeting Justin Bieber at a previous MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) and having a heart-to-heart talk. He says they bonded over their struggles as young artists being under the spotlight.

The “Stack It Up” singer said he had a talk with Bieber because he wanted to settle a feud that was going on at the time with the singer and One Direction. Payne remembered having “a really long hat” with the Canadian artist things about himself that no one else knows about.

It was also through the conversation that they talked about the struggles they face while being under the spotlight at a young age. The English artist acknowledged Bieber’s struggles and applauded him for going through them by himself.

“I knew he had always been struggling, but you have to imagine, I had four other people going through the same thing. It would bring me back down to earth every time I went a little bit too far. He was doing it by himself. Nobody knows what Justin Bieber thought. It’s Justin Bieber,” Payne said during an interview with SiriusXM Hits 1’s “The Morning Mash Up” on Tuesday.

In the same interview, the “Strip That Down” singer addressed Bieber’s recent confession on Instagram about his past struggles and past behaviour. Payne agreed that the “Purpose” singer did some very bad things and that he does not agree with them. However, he also sympathised with Bieber and hoped the best for him.

“He was stupid at points. Of course, he was. But at the same time, it’s about where you’re going. It’s not about where you’ve been. Forgiveness is something we all have in us,” Payne added.

Earlier this month, the “Love Yourself” hitmaker confessed about doing illegal drugs during his early 20s. He opened up about his childhood struggles and how being under the spotlight at 13 years old made him act out. Bieber also shared that he is still working on becoming a better man and thanked his wife Hailey Baldwin, church friends, and especially God for helping him slowly achieve this.

Payne expressed his support for his fellow artist and commented on the post. He told Bieber that what he did (confession) was an “incredibly brave” thing to do. Khloe Kardashian, Ed Sheeran, and Scooter Braun and many more also shared their messages of hope and support for the singer.

Liam Payne poses in the winner’s room during the MTV EMAs 2017.Getty Images